Hello everyone!I have been keeping chickens for 4-5 years now.I have kept Bantams, A golden Comets, EEs, SLWs, and many more but never silkies.And next year(if mom will let me)i REALLY want to get some Silkies.But, my thing is, I need to make a sepret run and house for them.I was thinking of having a tall(6-7 feet)Enclosed all the way around run with a roof.Is this good?The roof so the pen stays dry when it rains so it doesn't get muddy.And I know Silkies aren't as good as protecting themselfs with all there fluff, so that's why the enclosed run.Is this good?And wich is better for bedding?Hay/Straw, or Shavings?Also, how many colors of Silkies are there?And one last thing, is My Pet Chicken good with shipping chicks?1-10 how good are they?

First of all, the run sounds good. A couple suggestions. Silkies don't fly much (at least, mine don't) so unless you are particularly tall and want to go inside, your run doesn't have to be that tall. Mine is maybe 4 feet tall. The walls can be wire mesh but for shelter from the weather, I'd make an actual little house they can go in. Silkies are very sensitive to wet and cold and do not do well in the rain. I'd suggest something like this:

Unless you live somewhere with very mild weather. Even then, you'll want to be careful. I live in Arizona and it almost never rains here, so mine just have a roof and part of the sides enclosed with wood, but when it does rain I cover my silkies' entire small coop with plastic tarps, and on the coldest winter nights they get a heat lamp as well.

I don't like straw as bedding since it tends to get moldy. My silkies like cedar shavings. Dried leaves will also work (just be sure they really are dry, or they'll get moldy like the straw). Others probably have some different suggestions; try doing a search for bedding types on this website.

Colors of silkies -there are tons, but the most common seem to be white, black, and buff. Some also have what I call "face fluff" (beards), some don't. My pair are bearded white and bearded buff.

"The American Bantam Association defines 6 standard colors: black, blue, buff, white, partridge, splash, and gray. Other colors that are also popular although not accepted as standard are: red, lavender, porcelain, and cuckoo."

Finally, I have never mail ordered chicks, so I can't give you advice there. Good luck! You've chosen a great breed!

I purchased my silkies from My Pet Chicken. Prior to them I purchased a set of various breeds. I ordered females and received females. I haven't had any issues with them so in my opinion they are a good place to order. Be aware the silkies are a very popular breed and ordering for a particular time could already be sold out. But it isn't impossible. As in my case, I just needed to be patient and check the site often for new dates available.